The former Strikeforce middleweight champion picked up his first victory since losing the belt to Luke Rockhold and tapped out late replacement Bristol Marunde.

The fight kick off the main card of “Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey” at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. It aired on Showime following prelims on Showtime Extreme.

Marunde, an IFL vet and a champion of the Las Vegas-based Superior Cage Combat promotion, took the bout on a few weeks’ notice for Derek Brunson, who failed a pre-fight vision test administered by the Ohio Athletic Commission.

Marunde was willing to trade punches with the ex-champ, but once Souza got the fight to the mat, he took his back and unloaded a punches. However, a few landed illegally, and the fight was restarted after a warning. Souza then immediately connected on a powerful right hook that dropped Marunde, and he followed him to the mat looking for a submission. Marunde, though, got back to his feet and survived the round.

Marunde landed a few good punches to start the second round, but Souza immediately answered and stunned him with short hooks and kicks. After a brief trip to the mat, Souza worked punches and straight kicks to the body that clearly affected his opponent. Marunde mixed in some decent counter-shots, but Souza again won the round.

Souza opened the final frame with a quick takedown, and after working for dominant positions, ultimately trapped Marunde with an arm-triangle choke. Unable to free himself, Marunde was forced to tap out from the submission.

The end came at the 2:43 mark of the final round.

After the fight, Souza, who suffered a close decision loss in the September title fight, said his goal is to reclaim the belt, though Rockhold is likely to fight Tim Kennedy next.

“That fight was pretty close,” Souza said through a translator. “Anyone who saw it saw that it was close fight. [I] deserve another shot for the belt, and I want it bad.”

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